Past Watchful Dragons - Oxford
Historian Humphrey Carpenter describes how C.S.
Lewis came to write The Lion, the Witch and the
Wardrobe, the first Narnia book

Interviews from the 2003 cast reunion

Historic interviews from the series
premiere

Special Effects footage

Outtakes

Photo Galleries

Movie: Discs:

As I write this, we’re awaiting the fate of the big-screen
Chronicles of Narnia, with
The Voyage of the Dawn Treader
opening in a couple of weeks and hoping to rescue things from the
underperforming Prince Caspian. The
Narnia series remains the only survivor of the post-Lord
of the Rings fantasy glut, having passed countless lesser-known works in
its wake. (Harry Potter
is still going strong, though it started before LotR and thus doesn’t
count as a bandwagon jumper.)

It makes sense, of course: C.S. Lewis’s fantasy series remains a beloved
classic, and under the helm of Andrew Adamson, the feature films have thus
far done justice to his work. But they weren’t the first ones to tackle an
adaptation of the Narnia books. The
BBC launched an ambitious effort to bring the first four to the small
screen: armed with only a fraction of its successor’s budget, but also
heartfelt love for the material and the sort of earnest stodginess that
characterizes most BBC productions. Warners has now released all four films
in a collector’s edition - presumably to capitalize on the Dawn Treader
publicity - and the collection definitely merits a look.

In actuality, it’s more like a TV series than a movie, with each book
divided into half-hour “chapters” to keep young attention spans from
wandering too far. That means you’ll be watching the opening and closing
credits quite often if you want to see the whole thing in one go. The
limitations of the era prevent them from fully realizing Lewis’s grandeur
(the shows ran from 1988 to 1990 originally), resorting to puppets, live
actors in make-up and some shockingly crude animation to bring Narnia’s
magical creatures to life. Shot on video and formatted for 4:3 screens, the
films lack a proper sense of scope as well, and the rigid adherence to every
line of Lewis’s prose cuts down on the excitement factor considerably. The
cast does well enough, but can’t hope to compete with the polished
performances from the later films, and those accustomed to spectacular
Hollywood extravaganzas are apt to come away underwhelmed.

And yet the comparative modesty actually becomes part of the selling point.
Devoid of high-end poise, the four films fall back on a sense of heartfelt
enthusiasm to carry them through. In the process, the series develops its
own sense of charm: buoyed by nostalgia and the heroic efforts of filmmakers
doing what they can with what they have.

Anyone who grew up with the books can tell you about the plots: the
adventures of the four Pevensie children (and later their horrid cousin
Eustace and his lonely friend Jill) in a magical kingdom populated by
talking animals, fauns and all manner of magical creatures. A thinly veiled
Christian allegory named Aslan presides over it all, sending the kids off on
various quests while exuding uncomfortable vibes of the “He died for your
sins” variety.

The producers take few liberties with the prose, and it proves a wise
choice, transporting Lewis’s narrative instincts intact to the screen. As
you grow accustomed to its rhythm, the budgetary limitations fade, replaced
by good cheer and a sense of innocence which serves the stories well. A few
surprises in the cast elevate the proceedings further, notably Warwick Davis
as the valiant mouse Reepicheep and Tom Baker as the perennially gloomy
Puddleglum. (Davis also appeared in the big screen versions of the film.)
Together, they provide an enjoyable alternative to their successors, letting
us see how different producers with different resources can still do justice
to the same works. The BBC never tackled the problematic later books in the
series (The Last Battle, in particular, may be unfilmable), but the four
films provide a sense of completion that Lewis himself lacked. We should be
grateful to it for that… and for the fact that best things about it don’t
need a single penny to make us smile.

THE DISCS: The set contains four discs, three of
which hold the movies and the fourth of which carries the features. (Prince
Caspian and Dawn Treader - both shorter than the other two - are
folded onto a single disc.) The transfer is nice, though the films remain
formatted for old-fashioned television viewing, which means black bars on
the left and right of the screen. The extras disc is fairly typical but also
enlightening, featuring interviews with the cast and crew, features on the
effects and a literary historian discussing the genesis of the books (and
their various adaptations).

WORTH IT? Nine hours worth of movies in a pretty
boxed set make the $35 price seem just about right.

RECOMMENDATION: Teens and those with terminal
blockbuster mentality might want to skip it in favor of the new one. Anyone
with kids and those who grew up loving the books, however, may be surprised
at how enjoyable the set can be.